Normality is For Idiots
by Risari
Summary: Being Sarayashiki Junior High's school treasurer never came with drama for Erina Fukui. Her life was pretty much normal and dull if you could pretend that the occasional fights didn't happen around the school; yet, things would begin take a very weird turn for her when a crime takes place.
1. Chapter 1

_**Author's Note:** _ So this story came as inspiration when I got fed up with a lot of authors on here copying and pasting their OCs into the Yu Yu Hakusho plot. In a sense, this was a challenge as me for a writer and as a perfectionist with how to properly include an OC into the universe of Yu Yu Hakusho without it being a literal copy and paste. So instead of having you guys being like, "UGH. I KNOW HOW THIS GOES." We'll just see if you can find any references to the series that are mentioned during the chapters! At any rate, I hope you all enjoy the fresh spin I've put onto the "OC joins the YYH crew" topic.

 _ **Extra Note:** _ One of my reviewers has pointed out about my choice of words and I totally apologize about them. It may seem harsh but there's stuff about the Yu Yu Hakusho fandom I've seen that makes me wonder why great authors have to do the copy/paste their OC into the story. It was like every single fanfic I've read had an OC meet one of the main protagonists (mostly Yusuke) and then become a background character who gets involved in say the Dark Tournament. (Mostly as a background character.) For me, it was a frustration that I couldn't help but address as an observer and writer myself because there was so much going on during the series that I was thinking, "How else can you input an OC without directly plopping them in during the events of the Dark Tournament?"

I've seen my fair share of good writers, but it almost sucks when most tend to go for the easy route and insert their OC into the plot line without really thinking deeper about the universe. Sure, the series may focus on Yusuke, but it's the actual universe that has so much potential even early on that I can't help but face palm at how the writers are. Again. I apologize about the choice of words I used. However, I will not deny that this was what actually inspired me to write this story. So without further ado, enjoy.

Feedback and constructive criticism is welcomed.

 _ **Disclaimer:**_ I do not own Yu Yu Hakusho or any of it's characters.

* * *

Beep. Beep. Beep.

"Ugh. Shut up already." A hand pressed on the alarm clock's snooze button, turning it off. With a groan, a black haired female climbed out of bed, albeit grudgingly. Yawning, she dragged her feet, getting ready for another typical day at school. After brushing her teeth, the teenager put on the familiar blue and white uniform belonging to Sarayashiki Junior High. The girl went up to her vanity mirror, getting out her brush to get rid of her bed hair. She was sure her alarm had woken her up early until a familiar voice called from downstairs.

"Erina, are you ready yet?" Her mother called from downstairs.

"Almost done."

Sighing the girl finished brushing her long hair, putting down her brush and placed her signature, matching blue bow on her hair. One last double check on her vanity, made the teenager feel relieved. The teen wasn't exactly all that pretty but she wasn't ugly either; average so to speak. Her round face and pronounced cheekbones gave her the outward appearance of a trustworthy person; a perfect candidate for being Sarayashiki Junior High's treasurer – a position that came with lots of responsibilities.

To finish up, Erina tied the yellow ribbon of her uniform neatly, and grabbed her bag.

After getting her bento box and waving goodbye to her mother and father, Erina Fukui went down her usual walking route to Sarayashiki Junior High, preferably taking the route that wouldn't let her bump into any of the delinquents from Kazanegafuchi Junior High that liked to hang around Sarayashiki for some morning brawls. It was an annoyance to most of the student body, but it was a normal morning routine to see some fights happening. After all, even Erina's route wasn't always perfect.

This happened to be one of those days. When she arrived at the school gates, Erina was almost knocked off balance by one of the guys wearing the Kazanegafuchi Junior High uniform. She was lucky that she had a quick reaction for the guy fell to the floor, flat on his face. In the distance, Erina noticed a person with a green jumpsuit, nonchalantly beating up a group of four other guys.

 _Figured._ She thought, not paying any attention to the fight. Erina knew who the heck it was without needing to see his face.

On her way to class, she bumped into Keiko Yukimura, the class representative that she worked with. A simple wave was given to her. When Erina got closer, Keiko simply reminded her of a meeting that would take place after school and to not miss it. However, it reminded her to tell Keiko of what she saw this morning.

"I'm just letting you know in case he skips class again, since he's a childhood friend of yours. At any rate. Have a good day, Keiko." That would be a complete lie for Keiko if Yusuke Urameshi was once again skipping class. Erina headed over to her morning class, opening her bento box and eating a couple of bites. Even though her alarm went off, it didn't wake her up completely early. Once the class started, it was just another typical day.

Erina Fukui attended Sarayashiki Junior High not because of choice, but more like it was closer to her home than any of the other schools around the city. She had an indifferent attitude, not really caring too much about the delinquents or the school's terrible reputation because of them. A school was a school and gave education; it was good enough for her and her family. Her grades were above average, but nothing too special compared to Keiko's outstanding academics. After all, there was a reason why that girl was the class representative. Many of the students and staff considered Erina as a well-rounded person, able to juggle her classes with her extracurricular activities. If it wasn't for her joining the tennis club or being the student council's treasurer, she would have just blended in with the rest of the students.

Honestly, she got along with most people, but found a friend in Keiko Yukimura due to their respective positions. So when Erina heard a particular intercom go off, announcing Yusuke Urameshi's name, Erina inwardly rolled her eyes. She would be hearing another one of Keiko's rants about him before the meeting started. The day went by normally with her school day finishing up with the meeting between the student council or anyone related to student activities.

She went back home and the morning repeated itself again. However, when she got to the school gates again, Erina noticed the students were pretty much cleared away, making a path in fear from someone. That was pretty odd. When the person got closer, she already knew it was Yusuke.

"Wow. I didn't know we suddenly had a freakin' _god_ in this school." Erina grumbled, pushing her way through the students that were blocking her path from the school entrance, following behind Yusuke. It wasn't as if he was going to beat her up without any reason. From what she understood from Keiko's stories or her observations from seeing him throughout the day – if he was in school - Yusuke didn't seem like the type to start a fight for the sake of starting one.

Her behavior made the students start chattering amongst themselves, loud enough to hear someone mentioning something like, "Wow. She's pretty brave for following behind him."

"Or she's probably stupid. For all we know, she probably won't come back to school tomorrow. He probably has ties with the criminal underworld." A girl whispered.

 _Oh please, save me with your stupid rumors._ Erina wanted to scold them; this morning wasn't exactly her typical one. She had been annoyed with the fact her little afternoon nap the day before ended up turning into a thirteen hour sleep fest. Erina was only lucky that she had gotten up barely on time without her alarm going off.

However, the students weren't worth the trouble.

She _would_ have been going to class if she hadn't heard a certain brown haired female's footsteps stomping up the stairs. _Oh god, Keiko…_

Erina followed Keiko and her stupid little friends, who she disliked very much because of how gullible they were. Honestly, she would have spent more time with the girl if it weren't for her judgmental friends. When she got to the steps leading up to the school's rooftops, Erina heard a loud thud followed by Keiko's yelling.

Erina could only get an idea that maybe Keiko hit Yusuke or something. Despite Keiko being a sweet girl, she knew the kind of temper she had when it came to him. Yusuke had gone down the stairs with a bright red handprint adorning his cheek. Yep. She clearly hit him. However, Erina grew annoyed with Keiko's friends who were hiding behind the wall when he was climbing down the stairs.

"Oh, would you two just quit it already! You're not any better than the rest of the student body." She scolded, making Natsuko and her blonde haired companion jump. They were already startled from Yusuke's appearance, but Erina's scolding made them even more nervous. Keiko heard the small commotion, climbing down the stairs herself, her arms crossed, evidently still annoyed by Yusuke's behavior – whatever it was he had done to her this time.

"Oh. Erina, what seems to be the problem here?" She greeted.

"These two _idiots_ were cowering in fear. I find it pathetic that you let them hang around you." Erina's brown eyes rolled when Natsuko turned to her, mentioning the various rumors that were spread about Yusuke, most of them absolutely ridiculous and laughable.

 _Yep. Just gonna walk away and go help the bookkeeper with her stuff._ Erina walked off, tuning out Natsuko's stupidity, leaving Keiko behind to attempt to debunk the rumors with her friends. When Erina got to the bookkeeper's office, she was greeted by an older woman named Ms. Sakurada. There were piles upon piles of paper stacked up, mostly consisting of the financial transactions that the school had made in regards to extracurricular activities or tax related things. Even though she was in her early thirties, it seemed the financial state of the school kept Ms. Sakurada quite busy that her office was always neglected and left in a complete mess. Bending down to pick up one of the papers that had fallen, Erina handed it to her.

"Oh good. You're here. Sorry about the mess."

"It's fine, Ms. Sakurada. What can I do for you?"

"Well… why don't you help me balance the school's total balance? You're the student council's treasurer, aren't you?"

"Yes, but I don't think that's within my duties as-"

"What?! I even left five thousand yen in the office by accident and you didn't even take it. Of course, I'd trust you with the book. Besides, you're the student council's treasurer. This is a part of your duties in case you've forgotten, Fukui-san." Ms. Sakurada's blue eyes narrowed at Erina, making the teen sweat drop. It seemed from her slamming the book on the desk, the older blonde woman wasn't going to take no for an answer from Erina. "Besides, I need to take a break for lunch. Make sure you lock the office once you're done."

"Right." The keys were handed to Erina. Taking a seat at the desk, she was balancing the checkbook, making sure the numbers matched the same amount of the yen that was hidden away in a safety box. After writing down the exact amount she counted, which took quite a while, Erina finished, neatly placing the checkbook back inside the drawer where it was left in and locked the office. It just meant that she would have to track her down before school ended to give her back the keys.

Everything was perfectly normal, alright. Until the announcement of Yusuke's death circulated within the student body. Things changed almost immediately in light of it. Most of the student body was quite glad that he was gone, and even though Erina had been quite indifferent to them before, the mere idea sickened her. Even though she didn't know him well enough, it was quite dishonorable to talk down about a dead person. The only reason she bothered caring even a little was simply because of Keiko.

After all, she was one of the ones who took the news the hardest.

A funeral was also announced, but the student body's own attitude towards his death was enough of a reason for Erina to skip the whole thing if they were attending. However, when she passed by the apartment where his mother lived, knowing this information because of Keiko, there were certain thoughts that maybe she should pay her respects.

 _But you don't even know him at all._ Her logic kicked in.

Right. That was true.

The days after were normal, but it simply wasn't the same at all. It was really weird not hearing that damn intercom blasting during random intervals when the principal was looking for Yusuke or the many fights that happened on school property. After all, the delinquents didn't just attack the rival school; they picked fights with Yusuke as well, wanting to take on the main "bad guy" of the campus. With his departure, well, there wasn't too much of _that_ going on. Heck, she even noticed that one guy in the bright blue jumpsuit wasn't himself either, used to him mentioning stuff about how he was going to beat Urameshi up or bragging about something else.

Now, he was just quiet. That was it.

Erina went back to her treasurer duties, attending the student council meetings that took place during lunch instead of after school. When she wasn't attending them, she was busy balancing the checkbook or training for a tennis game.

However, it was on this particular day when she passed by a classroom, overhearing what she thought was that one guy's voice. She couldn't help but eavesdrop. All she could understand was something about not fighting for a week or else something would happen, but the voices were a bit muffled. Erina pretended she hadn't heard anything when the door opened, seeing the same reddish-orange haired guy and his friends walk out to the front of the school.

It was when he finished talking with them that she couldn't help but approach his three friends.

"Hey, so what happened _in_ there? I was passing by and couldn't help but kind of hear a bit of the conversation."

"Ah. Mr. Akashi made Kuwabara promise that he wouldn't fight for a week or else Okubo over here would lose his job." The light brown, almost blonde, haired one of the trio explained, motioning to his much heavier companion. Huh. Well, now she had a name to that particular face. The name almost rang a bell.

"Say… isn't he the one constantly in fights with Urameshi?"

"Yep. They're rivals, pretty much."

"Right. Makes a lot of sense since I have the same class as Kuwabara. He always kept blabbing a lot about him." Erina whistled, now remembering him. He was similar to Yusuke in the sense that they both loved fighting. The fact Kuwabara was willing to quit for a week was quite a promise he was willing to make. "That sure sucks."

"Tell me about it." The blonde one shook his head.

"We should get going before some punks from the Kazanegafuchi decide to jump us." Okubo commented, his friends nodding. The trio walked down the same path as Kuwabara, heading home, leaving Erina alone. She went down her usual path home.

The next morning, Erina was in for quite a rude awakening. Quite literally. She had been going down the usual path, but this time Kuwabara was walking in the opposite direction, reading a book. Erina turned back, wondering if she was seeing things.

"Wow. I never thought I'd see the day that _he'd_ be carrying a book." She commented to herself. It was almost like seeing a person with three heads; not that she found Kuwabara stupid, but he wasn't exactly the academic type from what she remembered correctly in class. Erina continued walking down her usual route until a random guy pushed her out of the way. Everything else that happened was a blur. Losing her balance, the back of her head slammed against the hard pavement of the cement wall with a loud thud, knocking her out.

All she remembered was just complete darkness as she lost consciousness.

When her brown eyes opened up, though, she could feel more than a couple of pairs of eyes staring at her. Glancing around, Erina noticed that her classmates around her were gaping at her. Alright. When did she actually stand up?

"What the hell are you guys gawking at-" Erina's brown eyes shifted downwards, noticing that there were three guys completely knocked out cold on the floor. Her eyes blinked quickly, wondering if it was a fucked up dream or something.

"Wow. Who the hell knew the school's treasurer could land a punch like that?" A guy commented. This made her actually dumbfounded for once. She didn't remember doing _anything_ , whatever the hell this was.

"WHOSE FUCKED UP IDEA OF A PRANK IS THIS?!" Erina yelled, making her classmates disperse. They didn't exactly want to mess with her with the kind of beat down they witnessed that she had put on the guys. What she didn't realize was her comment greatly amused a certain deceased spirit by the name of Yusuke Urameshi.

* * *

It seemed that the news of whatever she had done suddenly spread across the school by the time Erina got there. Everyone was just clearing a pathway whenever she made her way down a hall for class or went to find a place to eat her lunch quietly. It was when she was alone with Keiko that she was suddenly asked.

"So why did you beat up those guys earlier today?"

"Excuse me?"

"The word's getting around that some of the students caught you beating up some punks. As class representative, I must know if you did this. After all, I can't have the student body having a bad reputation if you really did do it." Keiko crossed her arms. When it came to her class president duties, the brown haired girl made sure that things were handled accordingly despite her nice demeanor.

"Honestly, the school's just being weird." Erina forced a laugh. "I mean when have I ever been into a fight, Keiko? Remember. We're talking about the same people who spread rumors about Yusuke being the leader of some Yakuza, remember?"

This made Keiko scrunch her face in contemplation. "Well, you do have a point. The idea of you beating up someone sounds ridiculous. However…" She narrowed her eyes at Erina, making the black haired teen almost want to cower. Now she had an idea of why the hell Keiko could put up with Yusuke; her no nonsense attitude was quite scary when dealt with the right way. "If I do catch you doing something irresponsible like that myself, I will have the student council vote to veto you out of your position. Do you understand how serious this is, Erina?"

"Right."

If only Erina could've eaten her words right then and there with what would occur later in the week.

* * *

Erina went into Ms. Sakurada's office, checking the numbers like usual. However, when she opened up the safety box, her brown eyes widened to the size of saucers when she counted the money. "Oh god, no." She checked again. "No, no. This can't be right." Thrice, even a fourth time. Her hand brushed through her bangs. This couldn't happen right now when Keiko practically gave her a warning with what would happen.

More than fifty-six thousand yen was missing from the safety box; and the only one who had been taking care of it… was her and Ms. Sakurada.

Erina would be the one automatically suspected of stealing the money. Placing her hands over her head, she was quite frantic about the situation. Well, there went Erina's luck with trying to prove to Keiko that she didn't have a bad image. Her brown eyes glanced up at the ceiling.

Her last name was practically a joke at this point, considering the circumstances.

What a way to begin her downward spiral.

…

The day after her discovery of the missing money, though, she had noticed something odd about one of her teachers. A certain Mr. Iwamoto. He had a certain pattern regarding his office hours, but it seemed that he was making more trips to his classroom than what was needed, even during lunch. Normally, he wouldn't even bother going inside his classroom unless there was an actual class. She had her suspicions it was him, especially since he had talked with Ms. Sakurada, leading her to remove Erina's privileges of taking care of the safety box even though that was technically her duty as the school's treasurer.

At least she didn't exactly make a huge scene about the thing. Ms. Sakurada didn't want to do it herself, but she would be also accused in some way if it was discovered that she was covering up Erina's tracks. Her motives were understandable. Erina became even more suspicious, though, when Mr. Iwamoto taunted her after the students had left his classroom about her revoked privileges. She would have _liked_ to actually punch the guy, but it would only look worse on her.

It was on the day that Yusuke came back when things got _really_ weird; and considering this was coming from the girl who apparently walked in her sleep and beat the crap out of some punks was saying something. Erina knew this because she had actually witnessed Keiko accompanying Yusuke back to class. In a funny way, she was glad that now Keiko wouldn't be sad all the time. However, it was when someone had suddenly screamed, "He's a ghost! Run!" that broke her out of her train of thought.

"Maybe he was in a coma. Besides, ever heard of a dead ringer, you dumb shit?" She yelled, quite annoyed. The back of her head was lightly tapped by a book bag, making Erina turn around to come face to face with Principal Takenaka's stern expression.

"That's quite a mouth you have on you, Ms. Fukui. I would hope that's not how you normally talk." She felt her face heat up at the comment. How embarrassing.

"Alright. C'mon, potty mouth. Let's get going." Yusuke's nickname for her made Erina glare daggers at him. Even though it was his first day back, she had to admit he was a bit of a smart ass now that he actually acknowledged her existence, snickering. Keiko simply mouthed for her to lay off him, making sure Yusuke didn't see. Grumbling, Erina followed behind Kuwabara and his friends into the school.

 _Right. Whatever you say, Keiko._

She was quiet for some time, the gears in her head turning. Maybe getting hit with the book bag made her brain work better. Opening her bag briefly, she noticed her Spectra Pro Polaroid camera was still inside. How the hell was she going to make sure that Mr. Iwamoto was the culprit?

 _Ugh. Think, Erina, think! Who would be a common enemy of Mr. Iwamoto?_ Erina swore she had seen Mr. Iwamoto getting on Yusuke's case the other day; their little exchange definitely wasn't friendly. Ah ha! Maybe… well, damn. How the hell would he cooperate? She would have to figure something out.

It was during her lunch period when Erina climbed up the stairs to the rooftop. The loud creaking of the door made Yusuke start to mumble, "If you're here to scold me about skipping class again, Keiko, I swear-"

"I'm not Keiko." Erina's protest made Yusuke open one eye.

"Ah. So it's Ms. Potty Mouth."

"Shut up! I don't have a potty mouth. And the name's Erina Fukui."

"Right. Says the one who has _quite_ a colorful vocabulary for a girl."

"Whatever. Look. I'm here because I need… help." Erina crossed her arms. At the mention of the word help, Yusuke propped himself up from his napping position.

"Oh. Well, if you need help with the human body, I'd be more than gladly to demonstra-"

"Not _that_ kind of help, you idiot!"

"Wow. Couldn't even get my hopes up?"

"I'm not-" Erina shook her head, pretending the exchanged didn't happen. "Well, look. I need help into getting into Mr. Iwamoto's office. Some money is missing from the treasury and he's been acting very odd lately. I figured you could help me."

"Ah. So you're one of Keiko's friends. Why would I help you? I don't even care about the student council."

"Ew. Don't associate me with _them_. I'm not the one who's stupid enough to believe those crap rumors."

"What a surprise. Looks like we finally have some intelligent people in this school." Yusuke whistled, clearly amused.

Erina inwardly smirked. Her next statement would probably reel him in. There was a reason she was treasurer. After all, she did pretty well when it came to negotiations. "Anyways, if you _do_ help. I can give you a reward."

"I'm listening."

"And no. It's not the kind you're thinking of."

"Damn it."

"Look. I'll buy you lunch for a week if we manage to catch Mr. Iwamoto on the act or any proof that he's been taking the money."

"Nah." Yusuke yawned, stretching. "You're going to have to strike up a better deal, Ms. Moneybags."

"Moneybags?! First, it was Ms. Potty Mouth and now moneybags?!" Erina shrieked. She clearly had enough with his little nicknames for her.

"What?! You work with money, don't you? I mean I honestly could've called you sugar tits."

"Why on earth would you-"

"Well…" Yusuke made a motion with his arms, making a bust. "You pretty much have a bit of a bigger bust than the other girls here."

"Who said for you to look at them?!" His comment made Erina lose her composure, covering her chest even though there was nothing he could see underneath. Now she really wondered how the hell Keiko could deal with Yusuke's remarks.

"Hey. Is that such a bad thing? You should be glad they're paid attention to by _my eyes_. Sheesh. Don't you girls appreciate comments like that?"

Erina huffed. "Back to our _negotiation..._ I'll even throw in dinner."

"Not good enough. Make it worth my trouble."

This made her even more annoyed. "Okay. I'll pay for two weeks."

"Too short."

 _What the fuck is going to make him work with me, damn it?!_ Erina cursed in her head.

She quickly spoke, "Fine, fine. What about if I buy you lunch and dinner for a month. A whole. Freakin' Month."

Yusuke got up from his seat, a little bit too eagerly. "Now _that_ is what I'm talking about." He pointed his index finger at her. " _You've_ got yourself a deal, Ms. Moneybags. So where are we headed to?"

 _Oh god. He needs to stop with the nicknames_. She inwardly groaned. Motioning for him to follow her, they went down the stairs.

* * *

"So… you're telling me that you need a distraction to get in?"

"That's correct."

"Which means I can kick anyone's ass and try to get him to notice?"

"Yusuke, just do whatever the fuck you do that makes the staff come over."

"Alright! Permission to kick ass granted. Now, lemme find someone…" He was about to cup his hands over his mouth and call Kuwabara when Erina and Yusuke heard his name being called abruptly from across the hall. Well, speak of the devil. It was Mr. Iwamoto himself walking towards them; and he didn't exactly look very pleased at all.

"I am seriously considering he would make such a nice serial killer." Erina whispered.

"You… wouldn't be too far off from that theory." His eyes shifted over to Erina's face then back to Mr. Iwamoto's figure. "Well, there's your distraction. You better make this worthwhile." He walked over to Mr. Iwamoto, placing his hands in his pocket. When Yusuke was taken forcefully than usual, acting out his part, Erina quickly moved, heading into Mr. Iwamoto's classroom that was located in this hall with her camera in hand.

 _If I were a stealing son-of-a-bitch, where would I hide my money…?_ Erina's brown eyes took in the room. It definitely wouldn't have been the desks or the various drawers in the room. Erina made her way over to Mr. Iwamoto's desk. Making sure that Mr. Iwamoto wasn't coming back, she went back over. Pulling out the side drawers led to nothing. However, when she opened the main drawer, her jaw dropped.

Inside was whatever was left of the fifty-six thousand yen and the checkbook. She _was_ right.

Mr. Iwamoto was embezzling money all along.

* * *

 _ **Ending Notes:**_ Alright. So that was chapter one. So hope everyone liked the effort I put into this. In case if anyone's wondering, I don't think there will be any pairings for now except for the canon ones. Also, here's a notice about the update rate. **_I'll be updating whenever my actual planning and story chapters are ahead by two chapters. Example: I posted chapter one with chapter two done and chapter three in the process of being done. I will post chapter two when chapter four is done and so on and so fourth. :3_**


	2. Chapter 2

_**Author's Note:** _ Alright. Despite the fact I said I'd update whenever I'm two chapters ahead, I'll admit I've been having writer's block. I mean it's just been pretty bad in general. I didn't want to leave you guys on a cliffhanger or something. So here's chapter two. Plus, let's see if you guys can catch references to stuff that happens during the series. ;D

 _ **Extra Note:** _ I actually went back to rewatch Episode 6 when this chapter was done and accidentally committed an "oops" moment. I didn't realize when Mr. Iwamoto beats up Yusuke, he beats him up in _his_ classroom. Oh god. So just for story's sake, the setting is a bit different but everything else still complies with the canon. Also, there is a filler/original scene to give some background to the OC; takes place sometime after Yusuke is back alive but before Hiei's case. Again, the story is starting slow but there's a lot of foreshadowing with this one.

Feedback and constructive criticism is welcomed.

 _ **Disclaimer:**_ I do not own Yu Yu Hakusho or any of it's characters.

* * *

 _You son of a bitch…_

Erina snapped a photo, taking the photo out from the Polaroid and shaking it. She made sure she could get enough photos of this incriminating evidence before taking the items back with her, even getting a photo of the desk in Mr. Iwamoto's room. When the photos were done developing, she had about six developed. Yes, it was way too many, but it was better in case Mr. Iwamoto would try to play dirty or act stupid. She snatched the money and checkbook, placing them into her book bag.

 _Looks like a trip to Takenaka's office will have to do._

When she stopped at the door to the office, Erina could hear Yusuke's protests.

"Get off me, lug head, I didn't do it!" The sound of a fist meeting skin made her panic. Holy crap. What the hell was going on in there? Erina was frozen in her spot, not really sure what to do. Either go in and interrupt what was going on, risking her reputation or simply wait until she could accuse Mr. Iwamoto of embezzlement.

"Mr. Iwamoto, I trust you found evidence before punishing?" Erina heard Principal Takenaka's voice through the door. Oh good. Takenaka's here, but when am I supposed to go in? Then there was complete silence. Absolute silence. After what felt like an eternity, she heard some scuffling inside, prompting her to go in. Yusuke had dug into Mr. Iwamoto's pockets, taking out certain items. From the look of things, it seemed Yusuke was being falsely accused of stealing some items. When he took out the item that was stolen, Takenaka was quite serious about what was occurring before him.

"An explanation, Mr. Iwamoto?"

"Yeah. Why _don't_ we have an explanation, you crook?" Erina's inquiry caught the attention of all three men in the room.

"You! What the hell are you doing here? You working together with Urameshi? It makes sense. I know you were the one who stole the money in the safety box and the checkbook." Mr. Iwamoto sneered at her. Erina cocked her head to the side.

"Oh really? Then what the hell do you call this that I found in _your_ classroom?!" She opened up her book bag, digging her hands in there, taking out the checkbook and then the pile of money.

"You're just making yourself look bad. Just turn yourself in, Fukui." He taunted.

"I. Am. Not. Fucking. Done." Erina took out the photos, specifically the ones showcasing the items in Mr. Iwamoto's desk, with his room design clearly in the background. This made Principal Takenaka even more upset.

"Mr. Iwamoto, now you're going to explain _all of this_. Embezzlement is a serious capital offense, especially from a teacher." Principal Takenaka warned. "What _have_ you been doing with the money?"

Mr. Iwamoto clearly didn't want to explain anything, for he simply changed the subject. "I'm so mad right now, I can't even look at either of them." He stormed out of the office with Principal Takenaka on his trail. Erina quickly shoved the items back into her book bag. "I'm going to have to return this back to Ms. Sakurada. I doubt she'll give me back my privileges but I'll see what I can do." She didn't really have time to say thanks, especially since Ms. Sakurada would be back in her office at any moment, but she was glad that the items were finally going to be returned.

When Erina was about half way across the hall, she noticed a blue hue from behind, making her turn around. _What the hell…?_ Her eyes widened. All she saw was something blue quickly bolting from…Yusuke's index finger? Whatever it was came out like if it were a bullet, missing Principal Takenaka and smacking Mr. Iwamoto directly on the back of his head, knocking him forwards.

 _Did I really just see all that?_ She wasn't going to randomly ask Principal Takenaka if he had seen the same thing, seeing as he was occupied with Mr. Iwamoto's health. Yusuke seemed… occupied with something. _Maybe I should just go take a nap or something_. Erina turned on her heel, heading over to Ms. Sakurada's office. When she stopped at the front door, she knocked before opening the door.

"Ms. Sakurada, I need to talk to you about something."

* * *

"Oh my. So Mr. Iwamoto did take the money. Oh dear. How much have we lost?" She quickly did the math, evidently much faster than Erina's, for her blue eyes widened. "Oh no. This is less than twenty five percent of what we originally had!" She moaned, burying her face in her hands. Erina could tell it was definitely time for her to leave. She simply left the incriminating photos to the bookkeeper, only saying, "Keep the evidence with you. The principal knows about this. I just… hope we get the money back."

"I hope so too." Erina closed the door behind her with a solemn look on her face. Well, that was one problem to take care of. She headed home, actually taking a different route this time, figuring extending her walking time could help her cope with what crazy thing she saw. Really. What the hell was it that came out of his index finger? As her mind tried to work out some kind of logical explanation for it, her attention was diverted elsewhere when she heard sirens blaring across the street. The paramedics quickly got off from their vehicle, paying attention to a child. However, Erina wondered if now she was seeing really weird shit. Or maybe on drugs.

Or maybe both even though that didn't make any fucking sense at all.

She had seen something come out from the child's mouth; fog-like in appearance. Her brown eyes peered up at where the thing was going, seeing it take off. Erina asked a bystander if he had seen the same thing she did. However, all he did was look at her confused, "I didn't see anything. Are… you sure you're okay? Maybe you need some psychiatric treatment or something."

This made Erina run home as fast as she could. When she got home, she startled her parents by running up to her room, disregarding their greetings.

"Huh. I wonder what's gotten into her." Her father shook his head, reaching over to grab the afternoon's newspaper. Her mother simply shrugged, not even knowing herself what was going on with her own daughter. Erina closed the bedroom door behind her, sinking down to the floor. First, it was her seeing Yusuke shooting something weird and now this? Tossing her book bag aside carelessly, she flopped down on her bed. If no one else saw the same thing, then maybe something was screwed up with her head.

 _Oh god. Maybe I am seeing things in this fucked up town._

* * *

Things still weren't in the clear for Erina Fukui.

The other problem was that despite all of the evidence, Mr. Iwamoto wasn't fired. She was surprised to see him still teaching the same class that she attended. What the hell was up with the justice system in Japan? The proof was evidently there, but there must've been something more crooked going on that she didn't want to get involved in. At any rate, with Mr. Iwamoto's return, things were a bit more hostile between them since then. Almost as if he was directly angry at her, he would purposely assign the students double the work.

However, most of the student body by then had gotten an idea who was the one that started this mess in the first place. After all, the scandal was sort of the last thing that was talked about. Most simply just didn't like that their treasurer was the one responsible of being nosy when she wasn't supposed to, making them work double the amount. Her only response to their grievances during the council meetings were simply, "Hey, a treasurer's gotta what do what she needs to do. Not my fault we have some crooked teachers in this school."

The resentment was obviously not that big of a deal for the students were okay with her again once the work load started to gradually go back to normal within the next week.

The animosity escalated between her and Mr. Iwamoto, though, when he suddenly spoke to her while on her way out.

"You lying bitch." He scoffed. "I still can't believe you tried to accuse me of embezzlement. Just you wait. You'll get your own damn medicine."

Oh yeah. He was still upset about the whole thing, making Erina's lips break into a grin. "Oh. I'd like to see you try." She left his room, not hearing what he said behind her.

"You'll wish you hadn't said that."

He would make good on that threat.

* * *

If you could ask any student in the entire country of Japan what day they single handedly liked, most would agree with Sunday, including Erina. After all, that was the only time when students weren't going to school. Normally, she would have just stayed home studying, sleeping or wasting time watching television with her family. This time, Erina was just… bored. There was an urge to get out and do something, walk around even.

She wore a white shirt that was underneath her light purple tanktop; a simple cream colored skirt that went down past her knees and a pair of brown flats. It was honestly one of the most casual things she could wear that was pretty comfortable. Erina grabbed her satchel, placing her saved up money inside. Downtown seemed to be like a pretty decent place to have a stroll. She browsed a couple of shops, simply gazing at the various displays on the window. Only a few did she actually bother to go inside and look around.

When she made her trip to the next store, passing by an alleyway, did she hear a small meow coming from there. She backed up, walking backwards, peering into the alleyway. Well, it didn't look _that_ bad to find the source of the meow. The meowing was still echoing, making her walk through the alleyway. Even though it had grown louder the more she ventured through, there was no sign of a kitten.

 _Ugh. You're just probably going insane again, Erina_. She was about to turn on her heel when an empty box flipped over on its side, revealing a brown kitten that had a dark black patch of hair on the top of its head; its brown eyes gazing up at her.

"Huh. I wonder who could've left you behind." She scooped up the kitten in her arms, cradling it in her around. Now all she would have to do is probably see if the local vet was open during this time of day; maybe a missing pet report was given to them. However, when she was roamed more around town, not having anything better to do, Erina swore she had heard a familiar voice loudly calling a name.

 _Again. Probably just in my head…_

"Eikichi! Where are you?!" _Okay. Now that's not in my head._

The kitten snuggled in her arms meowed. Erina recognized that voice from her class. Gazing down at the kitten, she asked, "Huh. I guess that's your owner then?" As if the kitten was able to reply, it meowed again. Erina turned around, walking to the source of the voice. Sure enough, she was met with a familiar reddish-oranged haired classmate of hers whose eyes lit up at the sight of the kitten in her arms.

"Eikichi! There you are. That's the last time I'm leaving my bedroom door open." He grabbed the kitten out of her arms, snuggling it. "I'm so glad that you're not hurt." An ahem snapped Kuwabara's attention from his precious feline companion. He gazed down at the shorter woman.

"Oh. I know you. You're the school's treasurer aren't you?"

"Yeah."

Kuwabara scowled at her, "Listen here, missy. You better not tell _anyone_ about what you just saw."

"I won't and I really don't care." Erina shrugged. "Besides, I've seen weirder things in this town."

"Like what?"

 _Like whatever the fuck Yusuke Urameshi happened to use to knock out Mr. Iwamoto and that fog-like mist thing I saw the other day._

"Um… it's nothing. Forget I even said anything." Erina scratched the back of her head, not wanting to have someone else thinking she was a nutcase too.

"Right. Well…" Kuwabara started. "Thanks for finding Eikichi. Say… do you maybe want to do something or hang out somewhere? I mean I don't have a lot of money to give you for finding-"

"It's fine. Besides, I'm pretty bored. I honestly wouldn't mind getting something to drink." Her answer made Kuwabara make a double check and make sure she wasn't pulling his leg. He was used to rejection but this? Erina didn't realize she accidentally boosted up his ego with her comment.

"Actually, I know a pretty decent place close by from here."

* * *

The duo ended up at a little café that had some seats outside. Perfect enough for Kuwabara, considering pets weren't allowed inside most of the buildings. He didn't want to leave poor Eikchi alone or out of his sight. After Erina came back with their drinks, she gave Kuwabara a small bottle of water, ignoring the stares from people. They were most likely staring more at Kuwabara than her.

"Figured your kitten's probably thirsty too."

"Thanks." He took a sip of his soda, having Eikichi settle down on his lap. After a couple of moments of silence, he finally asked her, "So… what's the school's treasurer doing with a delinquent like me? You trying to set me up or something?"

Well _that_ question came out of nowhere, but considering what happened with him, she wasn't all that surprised.

"What? I know you because I have class with you, Kuwabara." Erina replied, calmly. "You probably don't notice me because I sit more in the middle. Besides, Keiko's too busy doing something else with her friends. Trust me. I'd rather be doing something else than spend one more minute hearing some bogus rumors that Natsuko's heard." She huffed, crossing her arms at the mention of the bespectacled girl. "I still can't believe you think I'd do something to you."

"Sorry. It's just… you know. With what Mr. Akashi made me go through-"

"I know about that. Your friends mentioned a bit of the details when I actually overheard something being said about not fighting for a week while passing by his classroom." Erina leaned back in her seat, taking her own sip of her drink. "I honestly never thought you were the chivalrous type; protecting your friends like that. Takes a lot of guts for someone to do that."

Kuwabara flushed at her comment. "Heh. It's nothing. Just protecting the people I care about, you know." He mentally cheered himself on at how cool he said that, not embarrassing himself.

"Well, looks like you and I aren't so different despite the different worlds we come from."

"What do you mean?"

"I have a teacher that's actually on my ass."

"Mr. Iwamoto, right? The whole school's been talking about the embezzlement scandal."

"Yeah. Considering _I_ was the one who provided the evidence, you would think he would have been fired by now." She turned her gaze away from him, watching the traffic and people go by shops. "Honestly, the students blame me for double the amount of work he's been giving us. After all, it's not my fault he was the one who made Ms. Sakurada revoke my privileges, thinking I had been stealing." Shaking her head, she took another drink. "What an asshole."

"Agreed but wow. Never thought I'd hear you cuss again."

Oh right. He was there when she had insulted that random student in the morning.

"Ha. I'm… trying not to make that a habit, you know."

"Right…" The conversation continued on like that with them talking about events that happened in school. She even managed to learn a little bit more about Kuwabara, not enough to consider him a friend, but enough to consider him decent. Eventually, he brought on a sore topic: The student body.

"So… as the treasurer, what do you really think about the school itself?"

"Filled with a bunch of spoiled, judgmental idiots, if you ask me. They were the reason why I didn't attend Yusuke's funeral when we all thought he died." The memory of how happy they were at someone else's departure made her hold some resentment for her peers. Just that incident was enough to show her the true colors of her peers. She explained this to Kuwabara, making him just as annoyed as she was.

"Before, I simply had a neutral - almost indifferent - attitude about them but _that_ was when they really crossed the line. At this point, I wouldn't be surprised if they talk trash about me due to the embezzlement scandal."

"True."

"And besides, I still think you kinda have a thing for Yusuke. Just… saying."

"What?!" Well, there went his ego from earlier.

"I mean what _was_ I supposed to think? You weren't acting like your usual self for the past couple of days after the funeral. Plus, you blabbed a lot about him in class." This made him slightly embarrassed, but Kuwabara calmly bounced back.

"Well, I'm not gay if that's what you mean. It's just something you wouldn't understand when you find a worthy rival." He explained. "When you actually don't _have_ to beat up someone weaker than you; it's a feeling that I can't describe. That's why he's been okay in my book. Besides, he _did_ save Eikichi the other day."

Erina blinked. Whoa. Didn't think she'd ever hear those words coming out of Kuwabara's lips.

"You better not tell anyone about _that_ either."

"My lips are all sealed."

"Good. Good." Kuwabara nodded, approving of her answer. He was about to mention something else when a loud chorus of 'Hey, Kuwabara!' caused Erina and him to become startled, almost falling off of their chairs.

"Holy crap. Is Kuwabara on a date?" The blonde haired male inquired, causing the other two to scrutinize the scene. Erina and Kuwabara were definitely having drinks at the café; not something you would do with someone of the opposite sex unless it were a date.

"Wow. You need to teach me how you do it!"

"Well, what can I say? I'm a ladies man, boys."

 _Oh god. They're filling his ego, aren't they?_ Erina inwardly groaned, seeing Kuwabara take it all in. However, she immediately shut down any other thing they said by calmly saying, "This is not a date." She pointed at Kuwabara, "I mean he definitely had a gun pointed to my face. It's not like I could say no." Her comment not only broke Kuwabara's ego for the second time that day, but it caused his friends to sweat drop.

"Right. Well…" The blonde one trailed off. "We'll be off on our way. We were just passing by and saw you two. Just felt like saying hi." After the awkward silence, Kuwabara apologized for his friends' sudden intrusion.

"It's fine. Anyways, I should probably be heading home myself." Erina glanced down at her watch, noticing it was half past four. She got up from her seat, promptly causing Kuwabara to also get up.

"I can walk you home, if you want, just my way of saying thanks for the drink and finding my kitten."

"I don't really care. I could get home by myself, but I wouldn't mind the extra company." That was her only way of saying yes. Erina wasn't ever really direct about her answers. She didn't like forcing people to do things because they were obliged to. Kuwabara followed her, making small chatter with her, having Eikichi in his arms. When they got to her house, Erina was about to head inside after saying goodbye when Kuwabara abruptly placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Hey, I normally don't do this for people, but you seem like an alright person _if_ I can pretend you didn't make that gay joke about Urameshi and I." His eye twitched at the mention of the reference, quite bothered by it.

"Yeah, yeah. I was just joking. Besides, you're not that bad yourself. If it weren't for your reputation, you'd be an okay guy in my book." She gave a small smile.

"Yeah. Well… if you have any trouble with Mr. Iwamoto or his buddy, you just tell either me or my boys and we'll try to handle it." Kuwabara warned, "They're not the kind of teachers that make empty threats. It would suck if something happened."

"Right. I'll keep that in mind. Good bye, Kuwabara."

Funny enough, she should have listened to his words for what kind of hell would be awaiting her.

* * *

 ** _Ending Notes:_** So that was chapter two. Honestly, I was super hesitant with giving the OC some interactions between some of the main characters. However, when I pitched this chapter to my friend who is a die hard Yu Yu Hakusho fan, and fellow writer, she mentioned it was fine and very in character. Again, I still worry that I gmade Kuwabara OOC but we're talking about the Kuwabara way before he met Yukina.

At any rate, hope you guys look forward to more chapters!


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